Fliptop Battle: the Modern Balagtasan

Chapter 1
THE PROBLEM
Introduction:As a developing country on a contemporary period dominated with diverse influences, different sectors and government organizations as well as the non-governmental organizations anticipate on how to elevate and preserved the most powerful tool for communication – Language. Language is used to express inner thoughts and emotions, make sense of complex and abstract thought, communicate with others, as well as to establish rules and to preserved culture. It is used to inform people of what a person might feel, desire, anticipate, and communicate effectively with words, gestures, and tone of voice in a multitude of situation. Language is a special gift from God to mankind; if language doesn’t exist, human civilization would be impossible. Apart from being a means of communication, it is also a source of thinking as well as an expression. This is the reason why it is termed as “species uniform” possession of human beings.1 Language change and shifts as time passes by for a variety of reasons responding on social, economic, and political pressures. History records many examples of language changed and shifts fueled by invasions, colonization, and migration. Even without these kinds of influences, a language can change and shifts dramatically if enough users alter the way they speak.2 Media is a general form for modern channels of public information. Traditionally, they are radio, televisions, films, newspapers, and internet. These disseminate information and entertainment on a wide scale and their powers of manipulating public opinion are the subject of much discussion and research.3 Media are changing the terms of our engagement with language and social semiosis in late modernity, and with linguistic variation and dialect as part of that. Media made a great impact on language change by means of word adaptation as well as familiarization of words especially on Filipino people as shown on television, internet, radio, or even...